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Zero Net Energy Buildings

MCLI Recommendation: “State legislatures or governors should establish state zero-energy building (ZEB) goals, such as California’s goals under California’s Building Energy Efficiency Standards.”

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30 resources

Example Local Governments

Lancaster CA’s building code

Lancaster’s building code (2017) requires that new buildings be outfitted with a solar energy system. New single-family homes must have solar energy systems that can produce two watts of power for eve...
Example States and State Governments

Zero-Emission Residential Buildings Memorandum of Understanding

In January, 2024, nine states signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) establishing the goal that 65 percent of all new residential HVAC and hot water heating systems use electric heat pumps by 2030...
Resource Local Governments

ACEEE Report, Programs to Promote Zero-Energy New Homes and Buildings

ACEEE’s September 2020 brief, Programs to Promote Zero-Energy New Homes and Buildings, surveys 20 different zero-energy programs across the country, and discusses these programs and the push to constr...
Example States and State Governments

Rhode Island Zero Energy Ready Stretch Code

Rhode Island adopted a stretch code to encourage the construction of Zero-Energy Ready Homes (ZERH). ZERH certified homes are intended to be designed and constructed to a standard that allows them to ...
Example Foreign

Vancouver Zero Emissions Buildings plan

Vancouver has published a Zero Emissions Buildings plan (2016) aiming to achieve zero emissions on all new construction by 2030. It empowers the city to require green buildings in any rezoning project...
Resource Executive Branch

GSA’s Sustainable Facilities Tool

The General Service Administration’s Sustainable Facilities Tool offers information and resources on transitioning to net zero buildings.
Example Local Governments

New York City’s Climate Mobilization Act (2019)

New York City’s Climate Mobilization Act is an umbrella term for a set of laws, including Local Laws 92 and 94 (established through Int. 0276 and Int. 1032), which require certain existing building ro...
Example Local Governments

Sebastopol’s Solar Energy Requirements

Sebastopol’s City Code (2018) requires new commercial or residential buildings, and specific alterations, to incorporate solar energy of either 2 watts per square foot, or offsetting 75% of the annual...
Resource Local Governments

New Buildings Institute Zero Net Energy Building Action Plan

New Buildings Institute has developed action paths for jurisdictions to support a long term commitment to Zero Net Energy (ZNE) Buildings.
Resource Executive Branch

DOE’s Zero Energy Ready Home Standard

The Department of Energy’s Zero Energy Ready Home Standard lays out tools and benchmarks by which to build homes “so energy efficient, that a renewable energy system can offset all or most of [their] ...
Resource States and State Governments

Oregon’s Executive Order 17-20

Oregon’s Executive Order 17-20 calls for carbon neutral operations in new state buildings permitted after 2022, compliance with USDOE’s Zero Energy Ready standard on new residential construction by 20...
Resource Foreign

International Living Future Institute’s Zero Energy Building Certification

The International Living Future Institute’s Zero Energy Building Certification was created to allow projects to demonstrate zero energy performance, defined as where “One hundred percent of the buildi...
Example Local Governments

Santa Monica Energy Code

Santa Monica’s Energy Code (2016) requires all new buildings use 10%-15% less energy than allowed by the 2016 California Energy Code, and achieve an energy design rating of zero. It requires solar ene...
Resource Local Governments

Zero Code Project

The Zero Code project combines a model building energy standard with a policy approach to require the adoption of renewable energy to projects to offset designed energy use to achieve zero net energy ...
Example Public Utilities

New Jersey Clean Energy Program

The New Jersey Clean Energy Programs are operated by contractors hired by the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities. One program is a residential new-construction program. The program has three tiers: ...
Example States and State Governments

Oregon’s Path to Net Zero Program

Energy Trust of Oregon’s Path to Net Zero is a program to support the adoption of net zero energy commercial buildings. Currently, the program includes early design assistance (a project kickoff meeti...
Example Local Governments

Nashville Retrofit Requirements for Government Buildings

Nashville’s Ordinance BL2019-1599 establishes: An energy retrofit program across at least 9% of metro government-owned buildings by square footage between 2021 and 2024, with a goal of achieving at le...
Example States and State Governments

Massachusetts’ Pathways to Zero Net Energy Program

The Pathways to Zero Net Energy Program is a $3.5 million Department of Energy Resources (DOER) initiative to spur the development of Zero Net Energy Buildings in Massachusetts. $3.0M is being used to...
Example States and State Governments

Washington State’s Zero Energy Code Roadmap

Washington State’s Zero Energy Code Roadmap (2015), prepared by the New Buildings Institute, intends to guide the process of revising the Washington State Energy Code through its revision cycles leadi...
Example Local Governments

Seattle 2030 District

The Seattle 2030 District is an interdisciplinary public-private collaborative working to create a groundbreaking high-performance building district in downtown Seattle. The district’s goals include c...
Example Local Governments

D.C.’s Net Zero New Building Codes for 2026

By 2026, all new buildings and substantial renovations in D.C. will have to be net-zero construction under legislation passed unanimously by the D.C. Council in July 2022. The legislation does not its...
Resource Local Governments

Report, Strategies for Massachusetts Municipalities to Implement Net Zero Building Mandates

This 2019 paper from the Emmett Environmental Law & Policy Clinic at Harvard examines legal complexities that Massachusetts towns and cities must navigate when mandating reductions of greenhouse gas e...
Resource Local Governments

Park City Net Zero Energy Performance Requirements

In 2017, the City Council of Park City voted unanimously to approve a net-zero energy performance requirement for all new and renovated municipal buildings and facilities, using the US DOE’s net zero ...
Example Executive Branch

EO 14057

In December 2021, President Biden signed EO 14057, which orders the U.S. government to be “net-zero” by 2050. EO 14057 directs the federal government to leverage its 300,000 buildings, 600,000 cars an...
Example Public Utilities

Eversource Zero Energy Home Incentive

In Connecticut, the utility company Eversource offers a residential new-construction program with several tiers based on Home Energy Rating System (HERS) score. The program pays the highest incentives...
Resource Congress

Proposed CLEAN Future Act (2020)

The proposed Climate Leadership and Environmental Action for our Nation’s (CLEAN) Future Act (2020) is a large, economy-wide climate bill released by the House Committee on Energy and Commerce. Among ...
Resource Private Entities

American Institute of Architects 2030 Commitment

The American Institute of Architects 2030 Commitment provides a national framework to evaluate design options to support net zero energy. The confidential Design data Exchange system lets architects p...
Example Local Governments

Pima County’s Net-Zero Energy Building Standard

Pima County’s Net-Zero Energy Building Standard, while not imposing legal requirements, provides tools and calculators to property owners and developers to assess energy needs and design net-zero ener...
Example States and State Governments

Delaware’s Code for Energy Conservation

Delaware’s Code for Energy Conservation requires the state’s Energy Officer to establish programs to promote the construction of zero net energy homes. By 2026, all new residential building constructi...
Example Local Governments

San Francisco’s Green Building Code

San Francisco’s Green Building Code (2017) requires new residential buildings to be installed with solar energy systems that meet a minimum requirement for per foot energy production. The San Francisc...